


Loving the Rival

by MushiMushiMushroom



Category: Samurai Warriors (Video Games)
Genre: M/M, Minor Character substituted in for semi-love rival because no one else exists
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-02
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:21:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22979779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MushiMushiMushroom/pseuds/MushiMushiMushroom
Summary: From the roots of their rivalry, a strong emotion had always been masked with that of hate. One who spurns such emotions delves deeper to know the truth behind their relationship - to love the rival.
Relationships: Kotaro Fuma/Hanzo Hattori
Comments: 8
Kudos: 9





	1. What did you say, Inahime?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [100_renren](https://archiveofourown.org/users/100_renren/gifts).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That summary made absolutely no sense whatsoever.
> 
> This was a work I made in scripture class, like, 3 years ago or something, and at that time I could not write to save my life. I still can't, actually. But fellow 100_renren here insisted that I post it because they seemed to enjoy it quite a bit. But when you're the creator editing past works that you think suck because you were a few years physically younger and a decade mentally younger, most of the time... you really don't...
> 
> So warning in advance, well, you know... old works. Cringe. Bad times. Etc.
> 
> But here you go, anyway. The fandom is dying at an alarming rate, so let's make its legacy burn again! And we shall burn brightly with it too! We'll burn until CO2 levels skyrockets into space! Which is bad, though, so don't do that.
> 
> Also, I don't know who this fic is appropriate for, so I'll just make it a 'general audience' kind of thing.
> 
> And if you're reading this, 100_renren, the last chapter is your happy belated birthday, goof. :)  
> (Not that it's actually up yet.)

_“Don’t you have anyone you love?”_

That question had been bothering him for a while.

He did not even know what love was, let alone know who he loved.

‘Just what is love?’ he pondered, as he leaned in close, listening to the enemy's plans of resistance against the rule of his lord. He got up to leave, but as he stood he was immediately sent flying.

“Begone!”

He slammed into a tree and dropped to the ground. He glared up to meet a cold, steely gaze from striking, blue eyes.

The smirk on the other’s pale lips stretched as he spoke.

“Kotaro…” Hanzo snarled.

* * *

“You look really bruised… What happened?”

Ieyasu Tokugawa, Hanzo’s lord, rushed over to his side, looking concerned.

“I apologise, my Lord, but I was spotted.”

The ninja from Iga, Hanzo Hattori, bowed deeply before his lord.

“By whom?”

“Their ninja.”

Ieyasu paused for a moment.

“That is understandable. He is rather… skilled.”

More silence followed after that. And that was to be expected - no word could truly describe Kotaro Fuma, the Hojo’s ninja. He was an enigmatic individual, the “winds of chaos”, cruel and void of all emotion, other than those of amusement. And he was also Hanzo’s long-term rival. Ever since they had met, Hanzo had felt no more than an intense hatred for the other; the other had never failed to light the fire (of hatred) within him.

“It can’t be helped. For now, we shall formulate our own plans for our next battle soon. The Hojo are no real threat to us just yet. Good work, Hanzo.”

Ieyasu gave a pat on Hanzo's shoulder, earning a confused look from the ninja.

“My Lord, why are you praising me? I failed in my mission…”

“Everyone deserves praise for their hard work, regardless of the outcome. You should rest up now, Hanzo. I will let Tadakatsu take the guard duty tonight.”

Ieyasu smiled and left Hanzo, making him feel quite confused. He didn’t understand it - if one was unable to fulfil his duty, why should they be praised for their efforts?

‘I don’t get it…’ Hanzo sighed as he left for his quarters. He had never understood normal emotions, after all - that was how ninjas were taught to live. Serve their master with unwavering loyalty, carry out their mission to fulfil their goal... that was it. There was no room in his heart for anything else.

Eventually, Hanzo’s thoughts wandered back to Ina’s earlier question.

_“Don’t you have anyone you love?”_

Why did this one question continue to bother him? Should he even care, for ninjas had no need for emotions? Did he… love someone?

At that moment, the image of Kotaro’s smirking face popped up in his mind.

Hanzo immediately blushed and shook the thought off.

‘No! Why is _he_ the first thing that comes up?!'

Hanzo then stopped.

If he didn’t know what love even meant, why did he react like that?

‘I must know what love means,’ Hanzo resolved, clenching his fists.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please end me. -_-
> 
> Other places where I grow:  
> Archive of our Own: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MushiMushiMushroom


	2. Dammit, it's Kotaro.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: this chapter is actually a recent addition to the story, because there was no thought for character development or pacing of the story whatsoever at the time this fic was written a few years ago.
> 
> I should mention that this story is based on the character designs and landscapes of SW2 since it was the only game I had at the time I was writing this, so Hanzo has the lower half of his face covered by his mask instead of what SW3 and 4 had. Minor detail for the next chapter. Also, I like SW2’s Odawara Castle.
> 
> The next few chapters have already been written and they just need to be refined. Very heavily refined. Message to my younger self: sofas didn’t exist yet. -_-
> 
> Anyway, see you in hopefully not another 6 months. I’m sorry for the extremely long wait ;-;

Hanzo was on his way to Odawara Castle, the renowned impenetrable fortress and home to the Hojo clan.

As well as Kotaro Fuma.

He hadn’t even reached the castle yet, and he was already doubting his decision to come here. But Hanzo refused to interrupt his master’s or any of his other subordinates’ work with his trivial matter.

And if he really wanted to find an answer to Ina’s question, who would be ideal to seek advice from other than the Hojo family? Their morality was greatly based on the strength of familial ties and friendship. Though they were a threat to the rule of the Tokugawa, many other people would consider them as understanding, empathetic, ‘good’ people, even though Hanzo saw no fruition in their future if they continued to act on ideals like this.

While Hanzo was observing the scenery of the castle from where he was, Ina’s question returned to him again. For some reason, this one question simply refused to leave his mind.

Why did Hanzo need to answer that one question at all? Why did he need to know what love was? Usually he would reply to such questions with, “Shadows have no emotions.” He doubted Ina would even remember asking such a question herself. But if this particular question bothered him enough for him to enter enemy territory for advice, then perhaps it was more important than what Hanzo had initially taken it for.

Hanzo glanced up, seeing the great castle loom before him in the distance, obscuring the sun from his view. From his position, he could see the blossoming cherry trees lined across the front yard as if it were another line of defence for the castle. Regardless of how magnificent the castle’s exterior was, he knew he would be attacked once he would set so much as a foot through the front gate - Odawara was not without its defence, after all. He was, however, confident of his method to enter, but he still brought along a weapon underneath his clothes to defend himself in the worst case scenario.

Such as preparing for an enemy ambush.

Hanzo quickly spun around and pulled out his scythe from under his clothes, slashing at the space behind him. There was a clashing sound of steel on steel.

“I’m impressed that you managed to detect me.” The assailant smirked slowly.

“What do you want?” Hanzo immediately snarled, knowing too well who it was and spending no second to process the sudden attack.

Kotaro, standing tall in front of Hanzo with his gauntlet raised against Hanzo’s scythe, looked down on him with the same blue eyes as he did the other night. And with his long, braided hair a dark crimson tone and pale skin almost like a phantom, comparing himself to Kotaro, Hanzo felt inferior as if he was being judged by an untouchable deity of chaos.

Hanzo returned the other’s gaze, and saw nothing but darkness in Kotaro’s eyes. He could never comprehend the rationale behind Kotaro’s actions. The thoughts hiding behind that unreadable smirk were all a mystery to him, despite their long-term rivalry. One thing Hanzo was certain of, however, was that Kotaro was clearly here with the intention to toy with him.

Kotaro released Hanzo from the deadlock and walked towards him as Hanzo jumped back and kept a defensive stance, watching the other closely with narrowed eyes.

“You need to be quicker than that, Hanzo. I was walking behind you for a while now. It was starting to get a little boring when you showed no signs of turning around. I could have easily tore my hand through your heart from behind, and you would have never even suspected a thing.” Kotaro shook his head and sighed in mock-disappointment. “A shadow must keep up with the person casting it.”

“Just tell me what you want from me. I have no business with you here,” Hanzo said. Kotaro ignored him and continued.

“And you’ve come back after one night already. So the dog of the Tokugawa returns to his kennel. How pitiful and amusing.” Kotaro chuckled as he began to circle Hanzo.

“That is not why I am here. I will never give in to the likes of you,” Hanzo sharply retorted, moving in sync with Kotaro so they were always across from each other.

“Why are you here, then, if not to succumb to my clear superiority?”

Hanzo felt no obligation to tell Kotaro the reason why he was here. It was none of his business, and Hanzo was not about to divulge such information that could easily place his pride at Kotaro’s mercy.

But it was clear that Kotaro would not let him leave if he remained silent, so Hanzo would still have to obey him in the end, much to his own frustration. Hopefully Kotaro would not catch onto the omitted parts of his excuse.

“...I’m only here to scout for my master. Now leave me be.” Hanzo began to slowly back away after giving his excuse to Kotaro, hoping it would at least be enough to satisfy the other man for the time being, but he was suddenly stopped by a solid object. Kotaro, who somehow appeared behind him, leaned over him and spoke in a low voice directly into his ear.

“You’ll have to try better than that to fool me, Hanzo.”

Hanzo gritted his teeth in annoyance. Of course it was bound to fail. No matter where their confrontations were, whether on the battlefield or not, Hanzo always seemed to taste defeat in each one.

As reluctant as he was, Hanzo pushed himself off Kotaro and faced him. Sometimes he wondered who the real dog was. As if Kotaro was a hellhound - always watching with his keen eyes, his hunger for bloodshed never satiated.

“...Fine. I want to know more about emotions.” He wasn’t telling a complete lie, but he did keep love specifically out of his statement. Kotaro tilted his head and hummed as Hanzo spoke, playing with one of his braids as he listened.

“Is that really all it was? How disappointing,” Kotaro remarked, already starting to become disinterested, even though Kotaro was the one who told him to spill the reasons for his being here. Hanzo silently seethed inside but continued on.

“And I know the Hojo family are ideal for helping me understand these human emotions. I was in no way here because I wanted to see you at all.”

Kotaro flicked his braid over his shoulder and began moving closer to Hanzo, who instinctively stepped back in surprise.

“But if that was all you wanted to know about...” Kotaro outstretched his arms invitingly, “then why not just ask me?”

Hanzo blinked in confusion. Did he hear that right?

“What do you mean?” Hanzo asked, uncertain.

“You can have your answer right here, of course. It will save you the few extra metres to the castle.”

Hanzo stared at Kotaro sceptically. He did not doubt for a second that Kotaro would demand a favour in return for giving such advice to Hanzo. Even if that were the case, would any of his advice be useful to him? Hanzo was hesitant to believe words from his long-term rival, heartless as he was.

Hanzo waited for even the slightest sign that Kotaro may have some ulterior motive, but the man in question said nothing and simply waited for his answer patiently. Hanzo eventually broke the silence.

“Why should I trust you? You too are a ninja. If I can’t feel emotions, why can you?”

“Oh, but you do, don’t you, Hanzo? You feel rage at your inferiority to me, correct?”

If only Hanzo was able to deny it.

Hanzo felt blood rush to his head in both frustration and exhaustion. “If all you’re going to do is mock me, then I don’t need your help.” He could not afford to waste any more time with Kotaro if he was not giving him the answers he needed, so he was about to leave, when Kotaro held up a hand as if he knew what Hanzo was about to do.

“I assure you, Hanzo, I will not keep you in debt for this. I’m letting you off easy this time. Consider this a treat from me.”

As suspicious as that sounded, and as irritating as his use of ‘treat’ was, Hanzo finally gave in and grudgingly turned his full attention to Kotaro.

“Spit it out, then.”

Kotaro simply gave a knowing smirk and began to speak. “I’ll make it easier by using a metaphor, then. Pretend that you are a dog, and I am your owner.”

‘I already don’t like where this is going.’

“Although it’s a little too accurate to be a metaphor, isn’t it? No matter. How would you feel about me?”

“I hate you with every fibre of my being,” Hanzo replied almost instantaneously.

“We’re speaking hypothetically, Hanzo. You would be devoted to me, willingly bent at my will regardless of what happens to you.”

“...Is that all emotions are? A commodity for your amusement? If that is the case, then I know all I need to.”

“But there is more to it than just that. A dog may be loyal to its master, but the dog may not be able to understand what the master himself really feels. Why does the master take care of the dog when he also puts a leash on it? Why does the master praise the dog and scold it all the same? It’s quite a complex relationship, isn’t it?”

Hanzo momentarily pondered on Kotaro’s metaphor, but he still could not quite grasp the meaning behind it. “Then what would this relationship mean to other people-”

“I don’t care about other people, but you’re different, Hanzo.”

Hanzo paused.

‘What?’

Kotaro looked at Hanzo, and for a moment, their eyes locked.

“I wouldn’t want my favourite toy to break under so much pressure.”

“...Oh.”

Hanzo gave a light sigh, but covered it up with a small cough. “Just keep going.”

“I’m already done, Hanzo.”

Hanzo frowned, unconvinced. “For a metaphor about emotions you called complex, that was quite a short explanation.”

“Because you’re not being specific enough. You can’t generalise emotions, Hanzo. Tell me - what emotion do you want me to explore the most?”

Hanzo already had his answer.

‘Love.’

But all he could say out loud was,

“There’s no… specific emotion.”

Hanzo was unsure why it was difficult to approach the subject head-on. This is what he came for, so why couldn’t he just ask for the answer? He would finally be able to understand why other people relied on such emotions, but that one word refused to leave his mouth.

Kotaro remained silent for a moment, then turned away as if about to leave.

“...Is that so? I suppose we’re done here.”

Hanzo snapped out of his momentary contemplation and, upon a brief realisation, shot a glare with the same hatred he always had towards the other man.

“You… You didn’t even tell me anything useful!”

“You only think it isn’t. Reflect back on my words and figure it out yourself. Surely you can do that much on your own, right?”

With that, Kotaro vanished into thin air, leaving Hanzo with possibly more questions than answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No one has ended me yet.
> 
> Also, thank you 100_renren for all of your help and drabble! They really pulled me through the whole chapter and the last few hundred-ish words of my fic respectively, otherwise I’d be dying here for another month or two.  
> The drabble that inspired me: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21539401
> 
> Other places where I grow:  
> Archive of our Own: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MushiMushiMushroom


End file.
